Slurry dispensing apparatus with movable center of gravity

ABSTRACT

A wheeled apparatus for spraying cementitious material. A trough shaped container mounted on wheels has a drive shaft extending along the bottom wall of the container which is in driving engagement with a rotor positioned in a stator communicating with the container. A motor is in driving engagement with the drive shaft whereas a hose is connected to the outlet pipe. Means are provided to force pressurized air through a second hose so as to force the cementitious material outwardly. The drive shaft is bearingly supported only at its top end which is positioned externally of the cementitious material within the container. The trough shaped container has a center of gravity which moves forward as the container is filled.

United States Patent Mills et al.

SLURRY DISPENSING APPARATUS WITH MOVABLE CENTER OF GRAVITY Inventors: Ernest E. Mills, Rural Rt. No. 1,

Straughn, Ind. 47387; James B. Miller, 1944 Abington Ave., Columbus, Ohio 43212 Filed: May 23, 1973 Appl. No.: 363,019

Related US. Application Data Continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 200,450, Nov. 19, 1971, abandoned.

US. Cl. 222/176, 222/413, 222/151 Int. Cl. F62b 11/00 Field of Search 222/176, 178, 239;

Heine 222/413 X 3,365,103 l/l968 Van Der Lely et a1 222/176 Primary Examiner-Robert B. Reeves Assistant Examiner-C. A. Marmor Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Woodard, Weikart, Em-

hardt & Naughton [5 7] ABSTRACT A wheeled apparatus for spraying cementitious material. A trough shaped container mounted on wheels has a drive shaft extending along the bottom wall of the container which is in driving engagement with a rotor positioned in a stator communicating with the container. A motor is in driving engagement with the drive shaft whereas a hose is connected to the outlet pipe. Means are provided to force pressurized air through a second hose so as to force the cementitious material outwardly. The drive shaft is bearingly supported only at its top end which is positioned externally of the cementitious material within the container. The trough shaped container has a center of gravity which moves forward as the container is filled.

5 Claims, 11 Drawing Figures RATENTEUAPR 23 1am I saw 1 or 4 FIG.2

TENTEU APR 2 3 I974 SHEET 2 BF 4 P APR 23 I874 SHEET 3 OF 4 Fig. 7

Fig. 9

Fig.8

Fig. l0

SLURRY DISPENSING APPARATUS WITH MOVABLE CENTER OF GRAVITY CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a continuation-in-part of my parent US. Pat. application, Ser. No. 200,450, filed Nov. 19, 1971 and now abandon.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention is in the field of spray devices for cementitious material.

2. Description of the Prior Art Several devices have been provided for projecting slurry from a container through a hose. Two such devices are disclosed in the following U. S. Pat. Nos.: 1,065,365 issued to Higgins; and, 3,093,364 issued to Schoonover. Another U. S. Pat. No., 1,884,423 issued to Walker is of interest since the patent discloses a rotatable auger which is connected to a mixer. In addition, several patents of interest were cited during the prosecution of my above identified parent patent application.

A problem with the prior art portable cementitious spray devices, is that the drive shaft of the auger forcing the cementitious material from the container into the hose is bearingly supported by bearings and protective seals within the container. As a result, these seals and bearings are in contact with the slurry material which causes maintenance problems and eventually destroys the seals and bearings. Disclosed herein is a device having an auger drive shaft which is bearingly supported only at a location external of tlie slurry within the container. The container is constructed to overflow prior to the cementitious material reaching a level where the material could contact the bearings. In addition, an agitator is mounted to the drive shaft so as to help keep the slurry loose and moving toward the rotor.-

Many of the prior art portable dispensers are difficult to maneuver when filled with material. The dispenser disclosed herein is constructed to have a movable center of gravity. When the dispenser is empty, the forward portion of the dispenser may be pivoted upwardly in a relatively easy manner thereby allowing the dispenser to be moved and turned on the rear wheels. Likewise, when the dispenser is full of material, the aft portion of the dispenser may be pivoted upwardly in a relatively easy manner thereby allowing the dispenser to be moved and turned on the forward wheels.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION both of which extend downwardly from the container in a direction from the forward end to the aft end, a plurality of front wheels rotatably mounted to the first wheel support and a plurality of rear wheels mounted to the second wheel support, drive means including a motor mounted to the aft end, the downward sloping wall of the container diverges from the first end wall to the second end wall forming a material receiving cavity having a major portion thereof located away from the rear wheels and approximately over the front wheels locating a center of gravity of the container when filled away from the rear wheels and approximately over the front wheels in a forward location and locating the center of gravity of the container when empty away from the front wheels and approximately over the rear wheels in a rear location, a forward handle attached to the forward end being located forward of the front wheels allowing the container when full and the center of gravity in the forward location to be pivoted on the front wheels, an aft handle attached to the aft end being located rearwardly of the rear wheels allowing the container when empty and the center of gravity in the rear location to be pivoted on the rear wheels, an

outlet pipe mounted to the bottom end wall at the second opening, an auger rotatably mounted in the pipe for forcing slurry through and out the pipe, the auger being entirely positioned in the outlet pipe, and, a drive shaft slanting downward adjacent the downward sloping wall having a bottom end positioned at the second opening and attached to the auger and a top end drivingly coupled to the motor.

It is an object of the present invention to provide anew and improved slurry type material spray apparatus.

It is the further object of the present invention to provide a spray apparatus which has an auger within the container which is bearingly supported only by bearings external of the slurry within the container.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a cementitious material spray container which has a movable center of gravity to increase the maneuverability of the container.

Related objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side view of a spray apparatus incorporating the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an end view looking in the direction of arrows 2-2 of the apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary top view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 looking in the direction of arrows 3-3.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side view of the opposite side of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary cross sectional view taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 4 and viewed in the direction of the arrows.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the apparatus.

FIG. 7 is another side view of the apparatus only with the wheels removed therefrom.

FIG. 8 is an end view looking in the direction of arrows 8-8 of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a cross sectional view taken along the line 9-9 of FIG. 7 and viewed in the direction of the arrows.

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary end view looking in the direction of arrows 10-10 of FIG. 7.

FIG. 11 is the same view as FIG. 5 only showing details of the couplings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference will now be made to the embodiment illustrated in the drawing and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended, such alterations and further modifications in the illustrated device, and such further applications of the principles of the invention as illustrated therein being contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates.

Referring now more particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown a spray apparatus having a pair of frame walls 1 1 and 12. A plurality of crossstruts or tubing 46 (FIG. 4) are fixedly fastened to and support frame walls 11 and 12. A plurality of wheels 14 are rotatably mounted to the frame which is composed of the frame walls 1 1 and 12 and struts 46. A trough container 15 is mounted atop the frame and has a pair of. diverging side walls 16 and 17 (FIG. 3) with a bottom wall 18 disposed therebetween. The side walls and bottom wall are integrally connected to end wall 19. End wall 19 is provided with a fitting within hole 21 through which a tube pipe is aligned. The pipe is mounted to wall 19 and rotatably houses auger 22 (FIG. 5).

Wall 18 slopes downward with drive shaft 24 whic extends immediately adjacent and above wall 18. Shaft 24 is coupled to auger 22 at the location of hole 21. The top end 22 of auger 27 is-hollow and receives the bottom end 26 of drive shaft 24 to which it is pinned. Drive shaft 24 has a top end (FIG. 3) and extends downwardly from end 25 to end 26. A pair of rings 36 and 37 (FIG. 5) are fixedly mounted to drive shaft 24. A flexible tube 34 'has its opposite ends attached to rings 36 and 37. Tube 34-is wound lengthwise along the shaft.

A sheet metal covering 45 (FIG. 4) is mounted to the plurality of tubes or struts 46 which extend the length of the apparatusand upon which frame walls 11 and 12 are mounted. Motor 38 is mounted to tubing 46 and has an outputshaft coupled to gear box 39. Other types of motors could be coupled directly to drive shaft 24. The output shaft of coupling 39 is connected by coupling 41 to drive shaft 24. The sheet metal covering 45 is shown fragmented to illustrate the positioning of gear box 39. Motor 38 is a DC motor and is operably connected to an AC to DC converter 47 which is mounted to wall 11. Converter 47 is connected to a source of alternating current and has suitable controls thereon for the operation of motor 38. By operating motor 38, drive shaft 24 is rotated which in turn rotates auger 22. It will be noted, that the motor is mounted to the container adjacent the top end of the drive shaft. A standard bearing 33 (FIG. 5) receives the top end 25 of shaft 24. Thus, the top end of the shaft is rotated by the motor and is bearingly supported by bearing 33 while the remaining portion of the shaft is unsupported. It should be especially noted that the bottom end 26 of shaft 24 is bearingly unsupported therefore eliminating many of the problems inherent in the prior art devices. When cementitious slurry is placed into the container, the slurry will eventually destroy seals and ultimately any bearings to which it comes into contact. Thus, shaft 24 is not supported by a bearing on its lower end but is supported only bearingly on its top end which is positioned at all times out of the slurry.

Pipe 20 (FIG. 5) has a flexible sleeve 23 mounted therein which bearingly receives auger 22. Rotation of auger 22 does not result in the rotation of sleeve 23 since the sleeve is fixedly attached to the outlet pipe by conventional fastening means. The sleeve may be produced from a material such as synthetic materials or corrugated natural rubber. Mounted to the end of pipe 20 is aflexible hose 28 (FIG. 6) which has a rigid metal conduit 29 mounted thereto. The conduit has an outlet 31 allowing the slurry within the container to flow outwardly therefrom. An air hose 30 is mounted to conduit 29 and extends along the length of hose 28 being connected via a conventional nozzle 48 to a source of compressed air. A meter 44 and air volume regulator 49 are provided to measure and control the flow of air. An on/off air valve 42 is mounted to conduit 29 and is in communication with hose 30. Thus, by opening valve 42, air will flow through regulator 49 and through the outlet 32 of hose 30 thereby spraying the slurry material exiting conduit 29. The outlet of the air hose is positioned adjacent the outlet of conduit 29 so as to spray the material.

As drive shaft 24 rotates, agitator tube 34 fluffs up and loosens the cementitious material within the container. The material within the container flows out through hole 21 being forced through outlet pipe 20 by the auger into hose 28. Many variations are contemplated and included in the present invention. For example, a roller type of bearing 33 is shown mounted to the frame tubing 46 being positioned at the upper end of the container for receiving the top end of shaft 24; however, other types of bearings may be utilized. In addition, bearing 33 could be located between wall 19 and coupling 41 being supported by suitable brackets in lieu of being mounted to wall 19'. Alternatively, bearing 33 could be mounted within the driving mechanism; such as, gear box 39. Rod handles 49 and 50 are mounted to the opposite ends of the container. For example, handle 50 is mounted to the end of the container adjacent the outlet pipe whereas handle 49 is mounted to the container adjacent the motor.

The spray apparatus shown in FIGS. 7 through 11 is identical with the spray apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 through 6 with the exception that a different manner of coupling the drive shaft to the motor is utilized. The cross shaped container 15 has a forward end (FIG. 7) with end wall 19 (FIG. 9) extending thereacross. The opposite end 61 of container 15 includes end wall 62 which extends thereacross. Walls 16 through 18 slope downwardly from end 61 to 60 with end walls 19 and 62 respectively having openings 63 and 64 pro- I vided thereon.

' Frame 65 extends downwardly in a direction from end 61 to end 60. The frame includes a pair of downwardly sloping tubes 66 and 67 (FIG. 8) which extend the length of the frame. A pair of sheet metal members 70 and 71 are fixedly mounted to tubes 66 and 67 and depend therefrom extending on opposite sides of the frame. A pair of sheet metal members 11 and 12 (FIG. 7) are fixedly connected to sheet metal members 70 and 71 and extend downwardly therefrom at right angles to tubes 66 and 67. The trough shaped container is fixedly connected to tubes 66 and 67. Tubes 74 and 75 are fixedly attached to members 11 and 12 and rotatably receive the axles of the rear and front wheels removed from FIG. 7 for the sake of clarity. Wheel supports 11 and 12 extend downwardly in a direction from end 60 toward end 61 thereby locating container 15 in a more forward direction. The downward sloping walls 16 through 18 (FIG. 9) diverge from end wall 62 to end wall 19 forming a material receiving cavity 76 having a major portion thereof located away from the rear wheels mounted to tube 74 and approximately over the front wheels mounted to tube 75 (FIG. 7) locating a center of gravity 77 of the container when the container is filled away from the rear wheels and approximately over the front wheels. When, however, container 15 is empty, the center of gravity shifts to location 78 which is approximately over the rear wheels and away from the front wheels. Motor 38 which is relatively heavy is mounted to the rear end of the frame thereby locating the center of gravity at location 78 when the container is empty.

Handle 50 is fixedly mounted to the container at end 60 and is located forward of the front wheels attached to tube 75 allowing the container when full and having the center of gravity located in position 77 to be pivoted about the front wheels thereby lifting the rear end 61 of the container upwardly and allowing the apparatus to be easily maneuvered. A pair of bars 68 and 69 are connected to sheet metal members 70 and 71 at the rear end of the frame with tube 69 forming a rear handle which is located rearwardly of the rear wheels allowing the container when empty to be'pivoted about the rear wheels when the center of gravity is located in position 78. Thus, the forward end of the container is pivoted upward allowing the apparatus to be easily maneuvered.

As shown in FIG. 10, end wall 19 has a top edge 80 which extends the length of wall 19 and which is lower in elevation than the position of hole 64 thereby allowing the material within the container to overflow prior to reaching hole 64. As shown in FIG. 11, the auger 27 rotates off center causing drive shaft 24 to also rotate off center. As a result, opening 64 of end wall 62 must be sufficiently large to allow drive shaft 24 to rotate off center. A flexible seal 81 is mounted to shaft 24 along with collar 82 which forces the seal against wall 62 thereby sealingly closing opening 64.

The drive means includes a right angle gear box 39 having an output shaft 83 with a toothed member 84 mounted to one end of the output shaft. A second toothed member 85 is mounted to the top end 25 of shaft 24. The toothed members are adjacent and are coupled together by a continuous chain 86 which flexibly couples output shaft 83 to drive shaft 24 thereby allowing the output shaft 83 to rotate on center while shaft 24 rotates off center. Auger 27 and roller chain 86 are the sole means of support for drive shaft 24. A backup nut 87 is fixedly mounted to one end of shaft 83 allowing manual reversing of the output shaft 83 and auger 27 in the event that theauger becomes clogged with material.

Gear box 39 is fixedly mounted to sheet metal members 70 and 71 with motor 38 mounted to gear box 39 and depending therefrom.

Flexible hose 28 (FIG. 4) is attached to pipe for receiving the material from the trough shaped material. The air hose is then mounted to the flexible hose both of which have adjacent outlets. A conventional control such as valve 48 controls the flow of pressurized air from the air hose to spray the material from hose 28 while simultaneously activating motor 38 to rotate the auger.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character, it being understood that only the preferred embodiment has been shown and described and that all changes and modifications that come within the spirit of the invention are desired to be protected.

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus for dispensing slurry comprising:

a trough shaped container having a forward end with a first end wall and an aft end with a second end wall with a downward sloping wall connected therebetween, said first end wall having a first opening and said second end wall having a second opening;

a downwardly sloping frame having said container fixedly mounted thereon, said frame having a first wheel support and a second wheel support both of which extend downwardly from said container in a direction from said forward end to said aft end;

a plurality of front wheels rotatably mounted to said first wheel support and a plurality of rear wheels mounted to said second wheel support;

drive means including a motor mounted to said aft end;

said downward sloping wall of said container diverges from said second end wall to said first end wall forming a material receiving cavity having a major portion thereof located away from said rear wheels and approximately over said front wheels locating a center of gravity of said container when filled away from said rear wheels and approximately over said front wheels in a forward location and locating said center of gravity of said container when empty away from said front wheels and approximately over said rear wheels in a rear location;

a forward handle attached to said forward end being located forward of said front wheels allowing said container when full and said center of gravity in said forward location to be pivoted on said front wheels;

an aft handle attached to said aft end being located rearwardly of said rear wheels allowing said container when empty and said center of gravity in said rear location to be pivoted on said rear wheels;

an outlet pipe mounted to said first end wall at said first opening;

an anger rotatably mounted in said pipe for forcing slurry through and out said pipe, said auger being entirely positioned in said outlet pipe; and,

a drive shaft slanting downward adjacent said downward sloping wall having a bottom end positioned at said second opening and attached to said auger and a top end drivingly coupled to said motor.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

said first end wall has a top edge extending the length thereof positioned at an elevation lower than the position of said second opening in said second end wall allowing slurry within said container to overflow prior to flowing through said second hole, said drive shaft extends through said second hole.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein:

said auger rotates off center in said pipe causing said drive shaft to rotate off center;

said first opening is sufficiently large -to allow said drive shaft to rotate off center, said drive shaft includes a flexible seal mounted thereto and a collar mounted on said shaft forcing said seal against said first end wall sealing said first opening;

said drive means includes a rotatable output shaft with a toothed member mounted thereon, said top end of said drive shaft has a toothed member mounted thereon positioned adjacent to said toothed member of said output shaft, said drive means includes a continuous roller chain flexibly coupling said toothed member of said drive shaft with said toothed member of said output shaft allowing said output shaft to rotate on center while said drive shaft rotates off center, said drive shaft being solely supported by said auger and said roller chain; 1

said output shaft includes a backup nut mounted thereon to allow manual reversing of said output shaft and said auger.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein:

said frame includes a pair of downwardly sloping tubes extending the length thereof and a pair of sheet metal members fixedly mounted to said tubes and depending therefrom and extending on opposite sides of said frame through the length of said frame, said first support and said second support are fixedly connected to said sheet metal members and extend downwardly at right angles to said tubes, said container is fixedly connected to said tubes.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 and further comprising:

an agitator tube spirallingly wrapped on said drive shaft which includes a pair of collars mounted thereon fixedly receiving opposite ends of said agitator tube;

said drive means includes a right angle gear box with said output shaft projecting outwardly thereof, said gear box being mounted at said aft end to said sheet metal members with said motor mounted to said gear box and depending therefrom;

discharge means including a flexible hose attached to said pipe for receiving slurry and an air hose connectable to a source of pressurized air, said air hose means mounted to said flexible hose both of which have adjacent outlets, said discharge means further includes means operable to control flow of pressurized air from said air hose to spray said material from said flexible hose and to simultaneously activate said motor to rotate said auger. 

1. An apparatus for dispensing slurry comprising: a trough shaped container having a forward end with a first end wall and an aft end with a second end wall with a downward sloping wall connected therebetween, said first end wall having a first opening and said second end wall having a second opening; a downwardly sloping frame having said container fixedly mounted thereon, said frame having a first wheel support and a second wheel support both of which extend downwardly from said container in a direction from said forward end to said aft end; a plurality of front wheels rotatably mounted to said first wheel support and a plurality of rear wheels mounted to said second wheel support; drive means including a motor mounted to said aft end; said downward sloping wall of said container diverges from said second end wall to said first end wall forming a material receiving cavity having a major portion thereof located away from said rear wheels and approximately over said front wheels locating a center of gravity of said container when filled away from said rear wheels and approximately over said front wheels in a forward location and locating said center of gravity of said container when empty away from said front wheels and approximately over said rear wheels in a rear location; a forward handle attached to said forward end being located forward of said front wheels allowing said container when full and said center of gravity in said forward location to be pivoted on said front wheels; an aft handle attached to said aft end being located rearwardly of said rear wheels allowing said container when empty and said center of gravity in said rear location to be pivoted on said rear wheels; an outlet pipe mounted to said first end wall at said first opening; an auger rotatably mounted in said pipe for forcing slurry through and out said pipe, said auger being entirely positioned in said outlet pipe; and, a drive shaft slanting downward adjacent said downward sloping wall having a bottom end positioned at said second opening and attached to said auger and a top end drivingly coupled to said motor.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein: said first end wall has a top edge extending the length thereof positioned at an elevation lower than the position of said second opening in said second end wall allowing slurry within said container to overflow prior to flowing through said second hole, said drive shaft extends through said second hole.
 3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein: said auger rotates off center in said pipe causing said drive shaft to rotate off center; said first opening is sufficiently large to allow said drive shaft to rotate off center, said drive shaft includes a flexible seal mounted thereto and a collar mounted on said shaft forcing said seal against said first end wall sealing said first opening; said drive means includes a rotatable output shaft with a toothed member mounted thereon, said top end of said drive shaft has a toothed member mounted thereon positioned adjacent to said toothed member of said output shaft, said drive means includes a continuous roller chain flexibly coupling said toothed member of said drive shaft with said toothed member of said output shaft allowing said output shaft to rotate on center while said drive shaft rotates off center, said drive shaft being solely supported by said auger and said roller chain; said output shaft includes a backup nut mounted thereon to allow manual reversing of said output shaft and said auger.
 4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein: said frame includes a pair of downwardly sloping tubes extending the length thereof and a pair of sheet metal members fixedly mounted to said tubes and depending therefrom and extending on opposite sides of said frame through the length of said frame, said first support and said second support are fixedly connected to said sheet metal members and extend downwardly at right angles to said tubes, said container is fixedly connected to said tubes.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4 and further comprising: an agitator tube spirallingly wrapped on said drive shaft which includes a pair of collars mounted thereon fixedly receiving opposite ends of said agitator tube; said drive means includes a right angle gear box with said output shaft projecting outwardly thereof, said gear box being mounted at said aft end to said sheet metal members with said motor mounted to said gear box and depending therefrom; discharge means including a flexible hose attached to said pipe for receiving slurry and an air hose connectable to a source of pressurized air, said air hose means mounted to said flexible hose both of which have adjacent outlets, said discharge means further includes means operable to control flow of pressurized air from said air hose to spray said material from said flexible hose and to simultaneously activate said motor to rotate said auger. 